Beyond the conventional…

Note: You have my apologies for missing a few posts. I had intended to post my Dragon Con schedule of panels and some other important information about that event prior to it. It turns out the world wide web is more of a guideline than a rule. In addition, this being my second Dragon Con, I am still getting my sea legs with regard to the frenetic pace.

Both of the panels on which I was a presenter took place on Sunday (Sept. 6) as part of the Alternate History Track ably run by Enrique Velazquez (a.k.a. “Dr. Q”). The first topic was under the description, Dieselpunk and Raygun Gothic in the Media and we discussed the cousins of steampunk. There have been many attempts to define the line between steam- and dieselpunk but during the panel we linked it to what I feel are two important distinctions:

• Whether the airship is lighter or heavier than air. This is broadly a question of all technological differences between the two sub-genres – airship or not.
• The societal changes of the Roaring Twenties and the Great Depression. The summary of the Interwar period between WWI and WWII is too vague and simple. Dieselpunk is grimier than Steampunk. The loss of affluence and of innocence, along with a drastic change in social order deserves more attention in the differentiation in history and in fiction.

My second panel was called, Vintage Advice and Accessories for the Modern Gentleman and it began with a discussion of etiquette – as it, if fact, should have. Each member of the panel has a bit of a reputation for being sartorially savvy (including myself, if I may say so modestly). Being known for proper comportment is something to which we should always aspire and diligently work to improve.

The host of the panel, asked us to name an aspect of behavior we would like to see return to daily civil interaction and another that we did not see as having much chance at restoration.

Ms. Hieber was on four times as many panels as I, three of which I was glad to attend. With her impressive career in publishing and her scholarship of Victoriana and the paranormal, she was able to provide a fine through line of the fantastic and magical – leading to Derek Tatum‘s introduction of dreadpunk as a newly defined subgenre.

And for the second year in a row Princess Alethea’s Traveling Sideshow entertained me (and many others). This feature of the Dragon Con YA track has been going on for far longer and based on two shows, I recommend it to all ages.

A fine discussion of creativity involving Ted Naifeh, a talented artist I’ve known for many years. There will be more on that in future posts.

Then came a visit with Randy Reitz and Cathy Cox – my second this year. They both provided some valuable insight on some upcoming projects, some of which readers of this blog know about and another about which I’ll be able to share details next month.

It was then time for Space Coast Comic Con’s inaugural. I’ve been to many first-year conventions and this one did so many things right. I was happily recruited by Mark Who 42 as a panelist for two Doctor Who-related hours.

All of this was enjoyable and a learning experience. Now back to art and writing.